Objective: To educate and certify Organizers on an international basis. The seminar is organized Open by the FIDE Event’s Commission (EVE), Asian Chess Federation (ACF) and the Saudi Chess Association Chess Federation.

Subject: This seminar will be held at Makkah city, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from 19th to 21st February 2015.

FIDE SEMINAR FOR INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZERS5-7 February 2015, Moscow (Russia)

Objective: To educate and certify Organizers on an international basis. The seminar is co-organized during the Moscow Open Festival by the FIDE Events’ Commission (EVE), the Russian State Social University with the support of the Russian Chess Federation.

The 3rd Senior Team Chess Championship from 24th February to 4th March 2015 in Dresden is already breaking all the records for participants two months before the start.

After the First World Championship 2004 on the Isle of Man (12 teams) the FIDE Congress 2013 decided in Tallinn that three test events with the new age structure (50+ , 65+ , 50+ female) would take place in Vilnius (2014) and in Dresden (2015 and 2016). Based on the number of participants in Vilnius 2014 (28 teams) and the last European Team Championship of Seniors in Dresden in 2012 (72 teams), the organizing committee anticipated between 65 and 75 teams for 2015.

This anticipation is significantly exceeded with the current registration status of 84 teams from 16 nations as of 1st January 2015. A great success for the event!

One of the most fascinating aspects of sports in general and chess in particular is that there is no such thing as predetermined results.

The formidable Russian team had been advancing through the tournament at full steam and it seemed as if nothing could take them away from the winning path. The fate of round seven wanted it a bit differently, though. Somewhere around move 40, Goryachkina and Vavulin resigned their second and third board games against Amin and Parham due to inevitable mating threats. In the remaining games the Iranian players had an extra pawn each, but the captain, IM Harandi demanded the top board player Asgarizadeh to offer a draw in order to seal the result. Russia eventually won the last board game but this did not change anything already. Iran won by 2,5 - 1,5!

The fight at the top has tightened as there are three teams in shared lead with 12 points, namely Iran, Russia and India, with Ukraine trailing by just a point. Four other teams have ten points. With three rounds to go, and Caissa seemingly willing to exert her whims, anything can happen...